#ObserveMe

The thought of someone coming in your classroom for any reason is unsettling for many teachers. They worry about judgement and ridicule. They stress about administrators and their colleagues seeing that they may not be perfect every day. That some lessons are more engaging and active then others. They want to know when any visitors may arrive so they can prepare their students, make sure they are on their best behavior. This to me though is limiting, I want visitors to pop in anytime and check out what is going on in my classroom. Whether it is active and loud, or simple and reflective, come on in. I was always curious though how to get people to come in during the school day. How do you advertise per se without sounding like you are tooting your own horn?

I was at a conference last week and low and behold someone mentioned the #ObserveMe movement. I was intrigued and went tot heir website and read about the strategies many teachers are using to invite others in, and how they are getting them to actually take the time to visit. I am a novice of course and this week I made my sign and put it on my door.

I started with this sign but then realized I needed to make it a little more intriguing and as collidingwithscience is my Google domain and all my school related monikers, I changed it a bit.

On my door it went. Noticed only by a few. I did however speak to my principal about it and he is investigating more and seems excited at the prospect of getting it more school wide. But alas two days and no visitors. I figured I needed something more flashy but not aggressive or as some teachers in this building believe, trying to "one-up" any one else. So I printed and displayed this morning a little addition to my door and hopefully this will cause others to pause and read my sign and hopefully ENTER.

I am a proponent of feedback-please, please, please, give me feedback or I will never grow as a teacher. I face ridicule and naysayers every day, every innovator does. I think outside the box, I always do my best, and sometimes I am so focused on engagement I lack the ability or time to just sit back and watch. So having others observe me might give me some more insight. I am hoping, positive or negative, people feel welcome to enter and just listen for a bit. I think we sometimes close our doors and forget there are other classrooms doing fantastic things every day-teachers stepping up and beyond daily who are not getting any recognition. This is a great movement and I hope it spreads like wild fire and is one of many sparks that leads to changes and growth for teachers across the globe.